In 2021, China’s Ningbo-Zhoushan Port handled 3 crore TEU containers. By achieving this milestone, the port has secured the location of the third busiest container port complex in the world.
This is an important achievement for Ningbo. Only 15 years ago, the country was ranked 15th in terms of container handling. In a decade and a half, the port has continued its progress and taken one of the top three places. In particular, they achieved the milestone of 3 crore TEU container handling at a time when container handling activities came to a halt last August due to an increase in COVID-19 infections.
Ningbo Port has come a long way keeping pace with the times in terms of technology. Evidence of this is also found in the event organised on the occasion of the container handling which marked 3 crore containers handled. To highlight the success of the port in automation, the lifting command of this container was given by a remote-controlled system. A remote-controlled bridge crane and a smart truck were also used to move the container.
Currently, seven of the world’s 10 busiest container ports are located in China. And the fastest-growing port in the country is Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. In 2020, the port handled 2 crore 87 lac TEU containers. However, the number is much lower compared to the world’s busiest container port of Shanghai’s 4 crore 35 lac TEUs. Ningbo lagged far behind the 3 crore 70 lac TEU containers in the second-ranked port of Singapore.
